A Day On The English Shore
by Wonder777
Summary: Henry has a break and decides to visit the eastern coast of England. Only to end up trying to help a pair of lovebirds get back together. Follow up to "The Secret". Part Two of the "Crystal Chronicles" Trilogy.


**NOTE: This is set almost four years after "The Secret" Please read that one first. This is a little story between that and the sequel, "Mists Of The Past". Enjoy!**

 _ **A Day On The English Shore**_

 _ **July 7, 2016**_

Henry was enjoying a rare break from his angelic duties. A good friend of his had suggested this stretch of beach on the eastern coast of England. It was late afternoon and the sand felt good beneath his bare feet. He had a big bag of seeds for the birds and scatters them on the walkways for them. How he loved to see them come down and eat it all up.

The breeze coming in from the ocean soothed his skin and he took in the sights, even had a refreshing lemonade from one of the vendors earlier. Not many people were out at the moment, a few taking long walks down the beach getting their feet wet. It was about six forty five in the evening and the sun was well on its way to setting.

He was relishing in the calm, something that in his line of work was becoming more difficult to find. Often he would be so busy, he would forget to stop and slow down. Taking in the smells of the ocean, it reminds him of how much care God took in making all this, leaving him in awe. Even after all these centuries in existence, he still had that childlike wonder.

Taking a short break on a rock, he turns his attention to a pair of love birds not far from where he was sitting. A big picnic basket was beside them on the dark blue blanket they laid upon. The affection between them was clear as day. How humans expressed romantic love to each other always fascinated him. The way they can express it without having to say a single word.

 _Oh how to be human and have someone special to feel that way with,_ he thinks, a smile playing on his lips, _how God made a special kind of love just for them. All the little details that go into it. Each touch and tease, making it all more the fun._ Throughout his eons long existence, Henry was always fascinated with human behavior, it was sort of a side hobby for him.

But in all that time one thing he learned it was the look in their eyes that said it all between them. By what he could hear of their conversation, _the young lady was most definitely not from around these parts, not even from Europe, but they seem to get along really well. She must be American, but has picked up a little of the local accent._

The one thing though that he noticed was that she kept looking his way, like she knew he was there. That made him a little bit nervous. After a few moments, she turns her attention back to the red haired young man. He was holding some green grapes, playfully teasing her by dangling them just over her head.

"Come on, let me have some. You know full well they're my favorites!" she playfully pleads. "They were always better than the purple ones to me! And you've had more than enough!" He smiles and finally lowers them to her lips. She then pulls one off with her mouth.

The couple were just gazing at the horizon, the evening was setting in. Crystal felt safe in her boyfriend's embrace. He had cleared this four day weekend for just the two of them and for his line of work, it was not easy. Being a pop star who travelled around the world, moments like this came few and far between. Plus, he needed some rest after a string of concerts the last two weeks.

She runs a hand through his darkening red hair that he had just gotten cut after having it shoulder length for some time. He was quite literally, the man of her dreams. Those blue eyes captivated her ever since they first met in the halls of her college last fall. The memory comes back to her.

Crystal was rushing to get some errands done for her professor as an student assistant when she bumped into him by accident in the hall one mid October afternoon. Then they met again at a charity costume ball Halloween night. He had been dressed as a Musketeer and her as a Southern Belle.

She couldn't have it any better. A day on the beach capped off by a picnic dinner with the man she had grown to love in such a short time. Nothing fancy, just some local store bought food, the way they preferred it. It had been just over a year since Crystal had even been to the beach.

It had been with family back home, only two weeks before packing to come over to England to study. It reminded her of those summer days of her childhood. She hadn't had the chance to leave London very much between school and work taking up most of her time, so this was a rarity. The last time they were together like this was right before he left to perform some shows late last month.

As Alex drew her closer, he felt her tense up. "What's wrong love? You're nervous as can be. Is it about that collection you're working on?" She was a aspiring writer and about to publish her first collection of original short stories while at the same time, a college student. He knew it had been busy for the two of them the last few weeks, hence the reason they took time out for this trip.

She takes a deep breath and answers his question with one of her own. "No, I'm good with that. It's something else. Alex, what if I was to tell you everything about me? And I mean everything. Sure, I've told you a lot, but there are some things that are... unpleasant that I had been too scared to say until now." Her heart pounded so hard she swore both could hear it.

He looks confused. "What do you mean, unpleasant?" His English accent had a tone of concern. "Oh man, don't tell me you're..." Crystal stops him right there. "I am not a lesbian nor am I cheating on you, if that's what you're thinking. So let's get that cleared up and out of the way." Alex breathes a sigh of relief. "So what is it?"

She pauses for a moment before going on. "I know we've talked about it, but there are two reasons I cannot take this relationship to 'the next level' so to speak, at least not at this time. The first one you already know is my religious beliefs. Yes, I do have a physical attraction to you, that I can't deny. But I feel you have every right to know the other reason why."

Again she pauses. She had dreaded this moment since they started dating back in November of the previous year. Not even her family knew who she was dating. All they knew was that she was dating a local redhead who could sing. _Okay girl, now's the moment. Go big or go home._

She notices Alex's confused look, mingled with curiosity. Crystal started by telling him that if he wanted to break up with her, that was fine, only hear her out first. "When I was a girl..." her voice begins to waver a little.

She began to recall that dark part of her life that had followed her for so long. After she finished, Alex was left in a state of shock. By what he knew, she did have a difficult life by her own admission. It was not easy by any means.

"That's your answer, I had to build up the courage to explain it all to you. Besides, you have every right to know." The last few words were difficult for her to say. Crystal then looked into those blue eyes she could drown in and her heart began to crack, beating so hard she thought both of them could hear it.

"It's not that I don't want to, I just can't bring myself to do it before it's proper time and place. For me, the guilt would be too much. It would feel like I would let my former stepfather win if I did give in to those passions before then. I want that first time to be special, unforgettable. And with the man I marry, whether it's you or someone else. Please don't take it the wrong way, I don't want to pressure you into anything." Crystal quickly says, her voice lowered as she lowers her eyes from his.

 _He is going to break up with me. Why would he want anything to do with someone like me in the first place? I'm a plain Jane from America in London to study and he's a pop star. And it was exactly one year ago today I came here._ Those were the only thoughts that were running through her mind at that moment. I wouldn't give him what he wanted and now it's over.

It scared her to the core, realizing this was it, the end of their romance. Her first boyfriend and it's all over because of her past. Up one side of her mind and down the other, she cursed that man who stripped her of innocence now sitting in prison. In that moment, she made an impulsive decision, the only one that made sense to her at the time.

She rose from the blanket, picked up her sandals and began to run as fast as she could in the sand. With hot tears blinding her, Alex calls out her name. As much as she loved him, but at the moment, the last thing she wanted to hear was his voice. The only thing Crystal needed now was some time alone to clear her head.

Henry saw the young man flop down on the blanket, his dark, red hair covering the outraged and worried expression on his face. He now knew why she was so hesitant to his advances, why she had been slow to respond. The angel could see he was on the verge of tears.

He wanted her to be his first lover, now it was the last thing on his mind. All this was almost too much for him to process all at once. He was angry, yes, not at her, but at the man who harmed his Yankee Rose (that was his pet name for her). Alex was truly in love with Crystal, and now he wasn't sure of how to deal with this new revelation.

 _If I ever had a chance to meet him, that man would be deader than a doornail_. He thought as her words replayed in his mind. _Thankfully he's locked away across the pond. If he knows what's good for him, he stays over there and not ever set foot here._

Alex had breathed a sigh of relief at that. _Before I could say anything, she runs off, scared._ He had a few other unpleasant thoughts about him, none of which would be proper to mention aloud in mixed company. He couldn't help it, and rightfully so.

Concerned, Henry climbs off the rock and walks over to him. Alex looks up to see the angel. "No autographs please. My girlfriend just told me some things that shocked me. She went through some horrible events in her childhood and thinks I'm breaking up with her because of that." That was all he could say, his voice choked with emotion.

The angel assures him that he wasn't sent by a magazine or a photographer to follow him or anything, just a concerned stranger that's all. "I promise you, the media won't get wind of this whatsoever." Then when he sits down next to the young man, he realizes where he had seen him before.

"I knew I had seen your face before on television, got a set of pipes on you. So, tell me, what happened between you two." Alex was strangely at ease with this stranger, he couldn't explain why, but he just felt comfortable with Henry. Without going into much detail, told the angel some of what happened between him and Crystal.

"To be honest, I love her, I really do. I'm hopelessly in love with her. It took her a little longer for her to see that, but that's how I feel. Someone like me on stage singing to the masses and dashing good looks, with millions of female fans who would sell their souls for one night in my bed. But not Crystal. She has no interest in that, at least until she's married."

Henry then asked him, "Does she know how deeply you care for her?" Alex then responds with something along the lines of, "Maybe. Sometimes it's hard for me to tell what she's feeling. I don't want to lose her, she's the best thing to come into my life. She sees me as a normal person, not some pop star. I can talk to her about my fears, worries, hopes and dreams and not be judged. Or worse, end up in the press." Alex then looks at his watch and realizes it was getting late. "I have to find her. Could you please help me?"

Crystal's eyes were red and puffy from crying and her dark brown hair was windblown with specks of sand in it, her bangs were colored a deep purple. She stood at the end of a nearby pier staring at the sun going down. A few clouds drifted across the sky and the moon was starting to show itself. Why did she run? How could it all go so wrong?

Those questions ran through her head at a hundred miles an hour. _Alex is the first man to take romantic interest in someone like me. Cassie was right, it did feel good to finally open up to him about all this. But was it worth risking it all?_

For a brief moment, she had considered climbing over the rail and plunging herself into the cold waters below. But she couldn't even lift her foot up to do so. For the last few months, Crystal had been working with her counselor about how to bring up her past to him. Now that it was done, waiting was all she could do.

"I'm an angel Alex," Henry casually mentions while they pack up the basket so as not to leave a mess, "sent to help you two. It was hard enough for her to tell you this, but she was more worried about you and your reaction." Alex had been praying for an answer after Crystal ran off and thankfully, it came quickly. They then start looking for her.

"The nearest pier is right there. I think I see her at the end." He sees the where the little lemonade stand where they had been earlier in the day. It wasn't very far, in fact. Once they got there, Henry stops Alex once they got close.

"Stay here. Maybe I can calm her down." Alex does what he suggests and hides behind a post. Henry then casually comes up beside Crystal and leans against the rail. She looks at him, eyes begging him to leave her alone. But he could see she really didn't want that.

"Hey, I saw you earlier out on the beach with the singer." He begins. "Mind if I ask what's wrong? Name's Henry." He extends his hand and reluctantly she shakes it, considering her mood. "Maybe sometimes talking to a stranger helps." She looks at him and it takes a few moments, but she calms down enough to start.

"I just risked my relationship because I told my boyfriend things about me that now threatens what we have. Now I'm scared he will dump me because of it." Crystal wipes away a stray tear.

Henry pulls out a striped handkerchief for her and taking it, she blows her nose with it. "First time I've ever had a boyfriend and it may be over because of something like this." She slams the rail with her fist at the last few words. It kind of felt good, though it hurt. "Why does this have to hound me the rest of my days?"

Briefly she told the angel about what happened almost four years earlier. "Then one year ago today I arrived in London to study. Then the unexpected happens, within four months, I fall in love with a British pop star of all people. The idea of having a boyfriend was the last thing on my mind when I came here. My head is still spinning from it all."

Henry pats her hand and asks, "How do you know how he feels if you ran off without letting him tell his side? Maybe he wants stay with you and you didn't give him a chance to let him express what he feels. Is that fair to him?" That last statement snapped her back to reality.

 _He was right,_ Crystal realized. _How would I know how he really felt for me if I don't give him a chance?_ She was harsh on her end, running off like that, leaving him alone and frustrated, her actions could even be considered selfish. Overreaction out of pure fear, her counselor had been trying to help with that issue.

She looks at the blonde haired angel and flashed a half smile at him. "If he truly loves you, he will honor and accept you for who you are, past and all." Henry tells Crystal. "Being that open is a sign of true bravery and of true love."

It gave her something to think about. Standing up, Crystal straightened her hair and with a new look in her eyes. She thanks him. "No. Don't thank me, thank God." he says, "Feeling better now? Keep the handkerchief." Then Henry turns and begins to walk away.

Stopping him she asks, "You know a guy named Andrew? Tall, blonde hair, green eyes? Tell him Crystal's doing just fine, he'll get the message. By the way, I knew you were an angel when you were sitting on that rock near us. Thanks for the encouragement." She gives a little wink at him. "Sometimes I can see them. It's a gift." Henry was stunned at that. She did know he was on the rock earlier. He nods, "Sure, if I remember, I'll let him know the next time I see him."

Henry walks down the pier, signaling Alex to come out. Crystal turns to see her English lion standing about ten feet away, smiling from ear to ear. Her heart fills with joy as she runs towards him like in a movie. They embrace and she tells him they needed to talk, just talk.

Pausing just long enough to see the two lovers embrace and kiss, it made him feel good inside. Now he's gotten a message to an elderly lady in a Westchester nursing home. Taking one last glance at the setting sun, he vanishes into the air.

 _ **The End**_


End file.
